Should I Fertilise My Plants in Winter?

About this time every year the Winter Plant Care blogs start rolling through — and with them, the favourite tip: stop fertilising.

But your plants don't care what season it is. They care about light and temperature. And rather than cutting fertilising out entirely over winter, you'll get better results by adjusting it based on what your plants are actually doing.

The misconception

The theory is sound. Plants need warmth and light to grow. In winter there's less of both, so they slow down — and if they're not growing, they don't need feeding. That logic holds up in a lot of cases.

The problem is it assumes every home experiences winter the same way. They don't.

Some homes are brighter than others. Some people run grow lights. Some rooms stay warm year-round. Winter doesn't automatically mean your plants have shut down and gone to sleep — it means conditions have changed, and your care routine should respond to that rather than apply a blanket rule.

In the end, incorrect fertiliser application causes more plant problems than using none at all. But "use none at all" isn't the only alternative to getting it wrong.

What light actually tells you

The real signal isn't the calendar — it's whether your plant is actively growing. New leaves emerging, roots pushing through drainage holes, stems extending — these are signs your plant is still moving. A plant that's still growing in winter still benefits from feeding.

The Plant Runner Method starts with light for a reason. Light drives growth. Growth drives nutrient demand. If your plant is getting good light and still putting out new leaves in July, it needs feeding. If it's sitting in a dim corner barely moving, it doesn't.

And it's not just feeding that changes. Slower growth also means slower water uptake — which is why overwatering becomes more common in winter. The mix dries more slowly, roots draw less, and a watering schedule that worked in summer will be too frequent by winter.

The Pot Weight Test is the simplest way to recalibrate — lift the pot just after watering, then again every few days. The interval that worked in summer will look genuinely different by mid-winter. Adjust feeding and watering together. The winter plant care guide covers the wider seasonal shifts.

Your options for winter

Option 1 — Keep feeding, adjust the rate

If your plants are still actively growing — good light, consistent temperature, new leaves coming — keep feeding every two weeks but drop to half strength, for example. You're maintaining nutrient availability without pushing growth the plant can't sustain.

This is our default recommendation for most indoor plant collections in mild indoor winter conditions, where temperatures rarely drop enough to fully stop growth.

Option 2 — Feed less frequently

If growth has slowed but hasn't stopped — one new leaf a month rather than one a week — pull back to once a month at half strength. You're keeping the tank topped up without overloading a plant that's running at reduced capacity.

Watch the plant. If growth picks up, increase frequency. If it stops entirely, pause and wait.

Option 3 — Stop feeding temporarily

If growth has genuinely stopped — no new leaves, minimal light, cool room — stopping fertiliser is fine. An overfed dormant plant is more problematic than an unfed one. Salts can build up in the mix and cause root damage when the plant isn't actively taking up nutrients.

Restart feeding when you see new growth emerge in spring. Don't rush it — the plant will tell you when it's ready.

The one thing that makes winter feeding easier

Consistent conditions. If you can keep light levels stable — whether through positioning or a grow light — you take the guesswork out of winter feeding entirely. A plant with consistent light behaves consistently year-round. The seasonal adjustment almost disappears.

The bottom line

Don't stop fertilising because it's winter. Stop — or adjust — because your plant has slowed down. Those are different things, and treating them the same is where most winter plant problems start.

Watch the light. Watch the growth. Growth tells you more than the calendar ever will.